Wanda Klaas

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Lizalis’ iDinga Lakho

Lizalis’ iDinga Lakho is one of the best-known Xhosa hymns which was composed by the Reverend Tiyo Soga. The hymn - Fulfil your promise, God, Lord of truth - captures hope of making a difference in the world. It speaks of a God who fulfils his promise of saving all races. This hymn resonates with me on a personal note as it was a hymn that was often sung at a church I attended as a child, at a township I lived in at the time.

 Upon having to move back to the township this year, I had anxiety knowing that my living conditions would now change drastically.  It was at that moment that I realised how privileged I have been all these years. Thinking about this allowed me to think more about the life that is lived by so many black South Africans who have been living this way for years or all their lives and who continue to be worst affected by rising poverty.

Although so many South Africans live in states of poverty, their faith remains strong. Christianity has been the one source of hope for many black South Africans. Black people have used Christianity and their trust in the lord as a way of survival and dealing with issues of injustice that have affected black people over the years. However, there has been a high rise of cases of false prophets who target the ones in need. Miracle preaching is one of the shortest paths to wealth in Africa, with false prophets performing fake miracles in order to sustain their luxurious lifestyles. This is a sad reality in Africa as the poor continue giving their money to millionaire pastors and believe anything they say. I resonate with this topic a lot as I have family members who have lost a lot of money due to false prophets.

My body of work unpacks the reality that South Africans are facing . My body of work explores Christianity in conjunction with the lockdown/pandemic. With churches being inaccessible during this time, I was curious to see how individuals were coping with this issue and what it meant to them in terms of their spiritual practice .My approach is not critical but rather my aim is to express this narrative through the use of digital media.